Annual Passholder Parking Issues

[JeffH]

but I think a DHS entrance off Victory Way is a bad idea. Osceola Parkway would be much better

There's nothing wrong with Victory Way, it's not a main road, and it interconnects 2 main roads providing entrance/exit from both on-site guests and off-site guests.
And from a cost perspective would be prohibitive (Osceola Parkway is actually pretty far from the DSH parking lot).
And most of the traffic would have to drive down the entire length of Victory just to get to an Osceola entrance anyway, so what's the point?
My solution provides a simplified and flexible entrance (and exit) to DHS.
And with a light at Osceola and Victory, and back at Osceola and World, putting yet another traffic light (or building an expensive flyover) Osceola would be ill-advised.

My solution is straightforward, simple and would only require the construction of a short entrance and short exit road.

 

[71jason]

Yes. Parking at the studio this is been an issue since 1989.

Even when traffic flow is working "correctly," they still routinely direct cars right into pedestrian traffic. It doesn't help that the DHS lot has the worst parking staff of the four WDW parks--like, Universal bad.

 

[SMRT-1]

I really say this is Disney's own fault - I'm not sure how a date written with a sharpie is very professional. Is it just me or does it seem these new passes were rushed out?

 

[Timekeeper]

While we're on the topic -

Parking attendants at the Studios were handing these out when the lot reached capacity.

I imagine that there must have been some frustration from guests who saw empty spaces within the lot (from park guests who left early) as they drove around the perimeter of the lot to exit. Looks like Disney was redirecting everybody, rather than going through the trouble of placing cars in the empty spaces that were peppered throughout the lot.

 

[Bocabear]

As far as AP discounts go, between them and the new (even better) DVC discounts, it makes NO sense at all to buy the Tables of Wonderland discount...when you consider the 10% AP and/or DVC discount you get most of the places that the ToW is honored, you'd have to spend $1000 just to break even on the discounted $100 cost of ToW. Most people who would eat there enough to take advantage of ToW would almost have to be AP holders and most likely DVC members as well.
When the price went up this year I passed on ToW after almost 2 decades of having it, since it no longer made any financial sense....now if they boosted the discount up to 30 or 40% then maybe it would be worth it.

Tables in Wonderland gives you a 20% discount, not 10, and we find it pays for itself quite quickly especially when traveling with a large group... One meal for 6 at a nice restaurant can pay for the card. You also get Valet parking which is great!

 

[secondstartotheright]

At Epcot on monday I was asked to show ID instead of the usual procedure.

 

[Scuttle]

Interesting.
I was at DHS this morning (9:45) and entered through the Buena Vista Dr gate. The traffic was so backed up they were waving people through the gate & not collecting the parking fee. They must have lost thousands of $'s on that. Anyone know if this is standard practice?

I was at DHS at 10:30 Sunday and it was the same as always. MY girlfriend even said '' god they don't even look at the ticket''. Same thing at AK

 

[asianway]

Tables in Wonderland gives you a 20% discount, not 10, and we find it pays for itself quite quickly especially when traveling with a large group... One meal for 6 at a nice restaurant can pay for the card. You also get Valet parking which is great!

I think hes saying youre only getting 10% more off than DVC or AP does. TIW does work on the booze though, I dont think the others do.

 

[Scuttle]

Tables in Wonderland gives you a 20% discount, not 10, and we find it pays for itself quite quickly especially when traveling with a large group... One meal for 6 at a nice restaurant can pay for the card. You also get Valet parking which is great!

The valet parking is great! Especially at the Grand Flo where the self parking is a qtr mile away. It's also valid all day so you can just park at the resorts that morning and go to the parks and what not.

 

[Bocabear]

I think TIW is worth having for the Valet parking alone! I think you also get a discount on the events at Food and Wine festival..or Party For The Senses...

 

[Jakester]

Is it really hard to show an I.D anyway? Disney just wants to make sure you are rightfully using your ticket, I don't see how it's so miserable. Just my 2cents.

 

[tissandtully]

Is it really hard to show an I.D anyway? Disney just wants to make sure you are rightfully using your ticket, I don't see how it's so miserable. Just my 2cents.

Did you not read the first couple pages where people explained their complaining?

 

[JeffH]

Tables in Wonderland gives you a 20% discount, not 10

...as pointed out I meant only 10% more (although TiW discount is honored almost everywhere, but DVC is getting there)
...I usually go with 2 or 3, but when we used it, we used it often and at the best buffets
...lately seems we've been eating at all the restaurants DVC honors (nothing in MK or DHS)

One meal for 6 at a nice restaurant can pay for the card

......but at the new price ($100 discounted AP price), at $30 a dinner ($3 saved), you need to pay for over 33 dinners to break even, not 6...
...if you only eat at restaurants not covered by DVC or AP then at 20%, you still only save $6 and would need to still pay for over 16 dinners, not 6...
...when it was $50, then less so when they jacked it up to $75/year and there were no DVC discounts (most AP discounts are for lunch at some locations), we made out like bandits
...and YES you could "pay" for the card with a party of 8 (not 6) in a year.

TIW is worth having for the Valet parking alone

Tipping the valets pretty much eats up a lot of the discount, unless you squeeze a lot of people into your car.
The only place valet parking is necessary IS the Grand Floridian...where you can instead self-park at the Poly and take the monorail (I prefer that "entrance" anyway). Don't lose your receipt, or you pay for valet parking.

...I'm just saying, it's not the deal it used to be, which once was awesome is now questionable.

 

[Zummi Gummi]

...as pointed out I meant only 10% more (although TiW discount is honored almost everywhere, but DVC is getting there)
...I usually go with 2 or 3, but when we used it, we used it often and at the best buffets
...lately seems we've been eating at all the restaurants DVC honors (nothing in MK or DHS)

......but at the new price ($100 discounted AP price), at $30 a dinner ($3 saved), you need to pay for over 33 dinners to break even, not 6...
...if you only eat at restaurants not covered by DVC or AP then at 20%, you still need to now pay for over 16 dinners, not 6...
...when it was $50, then less so when they jacked it up to $75/year and there were no DVC discounts (most AP discounts are for lunch at some locations), we made out like bandits
...and YES you could "pay" for the card with a party of 8 (not 6) in a year.

Tipping the valets pretty much eats up a lot of the discount, unless you squeeze a lot of people into your car.
The only place valet parking is necessary IS the Grand Floridian...where you can instead self-park at the Poly and take the monorail (I prefer that "entrance" anyway). Don't lose your receipt, or you pay for valet parking.

...I'm just saying, it's not the deal it used to be, which once was awesome is now questionable.

A 20% savings on a $30 dinner with the TiW card would net you a savings of $6, not $3.

 

[luv]

A 20% savings on a $30 dinner with the TiW card would net you a savings of $6, not $3.

If you have an AP, you already get the 10%, so you're only saving an additional 10%, which is $3.00

I dropped my TiW because I just don't eat in WDW restaurants these days. I will eat in restaurants again one day, but wonder if I'll bother renewing.

I think I'm getting tired of paying Disney prices for food, though. That might be my issue.

 

[JeffH]

A 20% savings on a $30 dinner with the TiW card would net you a savings of $6, not $3.

That's what I said.
and if you tip the valets $3 each then that would net you a savings of $0.
One unique policy that I always hated was if your card got lost, destroyed or stolen, you had to pay for it again?!?!
...For a card that prints out for pennies, nothing else has this insane policy. You could go to WDW 100 times and forget your AP each time and have it reprinted for free, but 1 TiW and you are @#$@ed.
I went nuclear once when I left my Disney Visa and my Wonderland card in the restaurant bill "wallet" and when I went to Disney (inept) Lost and Found, SOMEHOW my Wonderland card got lost (Disney's is real good at fing up your lost and found stuff, I could tell you some stories of how inept they are). I had SUCH the argument with customer service to get my Wonderland card reprinted without paying for it...since I didn't lose it, their (inept) lost and found did. I won out on that argument, but it WAS a pain and can go far to ruin a day at Disney.

 

[Cosmic Commando]

Maybe someone can help answer this for me -

What's the point of all this (cracking down on fraud) when paying for parking is essentially based on the honor system? Why go through the trouble of purchasing/using unauthorized passes when the driver can simply indicate to the parking attendant that they are either dropping someone off (and cannot be directed to make a u-turn on the one-way parking booth street), or visiting one of the many resort locations (at the MK for example), in order to avoid paying for parking?

Imperfect information. Not everyone knows all the tricks of how the system works or thinks about how people going to the Contemporary get through the MK gate without paying. Or they think that there are five undercover Disney security guards on the roof of their car, ready to pounce if they do anything wrong. Or they think that their nose will grow if they tell a lie on Disney property.

But seriously, not everyone knows the tricks. Do you think all of those people would waste so much time parking at the water parks or DtD if they knew they could come up with a little story and park at MK for free? The amusing thing to me about the "rich Manhattan moms" story was that if those moms had perfect information, they could have just walked up and gotten a GAC for themselves for free.

 

[luv]

The amusing thing to me about the "rich Manhattan moms" story was that if those moms had perfect information, they could have just walked up and gotten a GAC for themselves for free.

That was my first thought when I read it.

 

[ChrisFL]

While on this subject, two things.

First, this past Sunday I had just purchased an AP online and just showed them the printout for the pass at DHS, they looked at it briefly and let me through, then after having the actual pass at Epcot later, they just briefly looked at it and let me through...so this definitely isn't all CM's yet.

Another odd thing is that at DHS there were cars parked all along the back section of the parking lots...and not parked in spaces, but all being huddled up at the very rear, marked off areas next to the pylons separating the incoming traffic from the lot. I must have seen 50-60 cars like this...VERY unusual.

 

[MichWolv]

For what it's worth, they swipe APs for parking at Disneyland -- don't know when they started, but they were doing it last Saturday.